Build community by supporting the new Independence Community Fund recipients

Too often in our society, and especially in the newspaper business, our focus is on problems and errors that plague any democratic society. Several years ago, folks at the Independent pondered what we could do to help celebrate and support the largely unheralded caring individuals and organizations that make the Pikes Peak region such a wonderful place to live.

The result of these discussions was the creation of the Independence Community Fund, whose mission is "to promote community building, civic participation and the incubation of needed new (at least to our community) innovative programs designed to help meet our growing region's unmet needs."

Launched last year, the Independence Community Fund works to showcase the incredible work and dedication of selected area nonprofits as well as their need for volunteers, in-kind contributions and cash money.

During this year's selection process, our Community Board selected eight worthy nonprofits from more than 60 stellar applicants -- see this week's Personal Space, the first in a series on this year's recipients.

These nonprofits will benefit from a 10-week multimedia campaign designed to showcase their work. In addition to $24,000 worth of ad space in the Independent, additional publicity will come from our media partners:

Through generous commitments from the El Pomar Foundation and Kaiser-Permanente as well as from the Independent itself, the first $25,000 donated to the Independence Community Fund will be matched dollar for dollar.

Because the Pikes Peak Community Foundation and the Gay and Lesbian Fund for Colorado are covering all of our administrative costs, 100 percent of your donation to the Independence Community Fund will go directly to the nonprofit groups you select. (You can pick and choose which of our designated nonprofits you wish to support.)

And through our matching grant challenge programs, money you donate will likely be doubled -- or perhaps even tripled.

In addition to cash, our groups have enormous needs for clothes, computers, backpacks and, most of all, volunteers.

Please give as generously as you can. Together, we can support these worthy nonprofits in their goals to help people toward independence and our community toward sustainability. Together, we can build community.

Mike Moore, FriendMarch 13, 1948 - November 7, 2002

It is with fond memories and great sadness we acknowledge the passing of one of our city's finest citizens, retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Alan Michael "Mike" Moore.

Along with C.J., his wonderful wife of more than three decades, Mike gave his love, laughter, insights and deep caring to our community through his work for such organizations as Race for the Cure, the Trails & Open Space Coalition and the Gay and Lesbian Fund for Colorado.

We are honored and humbled that in lieu of flowers Mike requested that his friends donate to the Trails & Open Space Coalition and/or the Independence Community Fund.